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Cinema, television, literature, and music–basically anything that can be reviewed. If you're interested in writing reviews, e-mail us at dacouchtomato@gmail.com. We won't pay you for reviews, but you get to practise your writing skills. It's a win-win situation for everyone.

Doctor Who. Series 2

After Christopher Eccleston, we now move on to the new Doctor, the Tenth. And his name is David Tennant.

The Doctor may have changed, but the companions remain the same. Same old Rose Tyler (Billie Piper). Same old Mickey Smith (Noel Clarke). Same old TARDIS.

Let's talk about this regeneration thing. If this were another fictional universe, I would definitely complain about changing actors within the same franchise. I complained when Marvel changed War Machine from Terrence Howard to Don Cheadle in Iron Man. I cringed a bit when DC replaced Katie Holmes with Maggie Gyllenhaal for the role of Rachel Dawes in the Christopher Nolan Batman franchise. But the creators of Doctor Who had that ironed out decades ago by creating the whole regeneration thing. One of the good things about being a Time Lord is that when you die, you can regenerate with a whole new body, a whole new personality, but the same memories. So when you get problems with an actor, whether it be on- or off-camera, you can just kill him off and replace him with another. Then the series can live on forever! Brilliant!

"Children in Need Special"

BBC

That's a real working number on the screen.
International rates apply.

This is David Tennant's first adventure as the Doctor. He's so fresh he even has Christopher Eccleston's wardrobe on him. Seeing as this is just an approximately 6-minute long video, this short serves no purpose whatsoever but to provide a smooth transition for viewers. Remember, Series 1 is the Doctor's first television appearance in years, and new viewers might find the regeneration thing a bit jarring. So they had to dedicate this short just to make sure the viewers didn't lose their bearings.

"The Christmas Invasion"

BBC

Yup, some island over London. Happy Christmas!

No Christmas episode is complete without family, so the Doctor's family on Earth goes on a Christmas adventure with him. Captain Jack Harkness (John Barrowman) isn't here, presumably because he isn't part of the Doctor's Earth family. Jackie (Camille Coduri) and Mickey are here, as is Prime Minister Harriet Jones (Penelope Wilton). And the best Christmas gift of all: the Doctor sword-fighting─in his pajamas. Don't worry, he changes into his famous trench coat in the end.

And now, here's the regular series.

1. "New Earth"

BBC

Looks pretty much like Earth grass to me.

New Earth. New New York. New use of psychic paper (as a messaging service). New aliens (the cat nurses). Old enemies (the last human made of skin). Just want to know: who's the huge head? (It's the Face of Boe.)

2. "Tooth and Claw"

BBC

Ooh, psychedelic.

Werewolves and Queen Victoria. This gives you an idea of how far-out far-reaching the Doctor Who universe is. Also, the wife has a very pretty face.

3. "School Reunion"

BBC

The missus and the ex. Every man's worst nightmare.

David Tennant is quite hilarious as the Doctor. And I love what the writers did, bringing Elisabeth Sladen out of retirement to play former companion Sarah Jane Smith once again. The headmaster's voice sounds really familiar─I was correctly able to identify his voice as the that of Captain Herc Shipwright in Cabin Pressure (Anthony Head). Also, K9 is quite obviously out of place in millenium England. Even his voice sounds really dated.

4. "The Girl in the Fireplace"

BBC

David Tennant is officially the sluttiest Doctor.

Oh, a Steven Moffat episode. This basically cements David Tennant's status as "the ladies' Doctor". Wait, this story sounds familiar... girl who waited... imaginary childhood friend... I see what you did there, Moffat.

5. "Rise of the Cybermen"

BBC

Two Mickeys. 'Nuff said.

When the Doctor et al. land in parallel universe-England, Rose meets her father (a fixation she's had since Series 1), while Mickey meets Ricky, a parallel universe-him. Ricky might seem more bad-ass than Mickey, but of course I love Mickey more.

Part two of a double episode, this one also deals with doubles. First, a double Jackie, who turns into a Cyber(wo)man (or maybe we should just call them Cyberpeople, just to be politically correct). And second, a double Mickey (named Ricky) who dies, making Mickey the new Ricky. No, seriously. Mickey decides to stay behind in this parallel universe, giving us the saddest goodbye I've ever seen on television. So long, Mickey. You'll always be my favorite companion.

7. "The Idiot's Lantern"

BBC

Damn you and your good looks, Tennant!

The TARDIS travels back to Queen Elizabeth's coronation in 1953, which is why everything looks so... fifties. It's the time when the telly was just beginning to become an ubiquitous household item─that also happens to erase your face when you watch it. Oh hello, Mark Gatiss. You wrote this episode. Cheers.

8. "The Impossible Planet"

BBC

"Black hole sun, won't you come?"

This episode made me realize that wow, the Doctor Who universe is actually bigger than the Star Wars universe. I'd also say it's bigger than the Star Trek universe, but I'm not quite sure about that, and I might be wrong. That's because this particular impossible planet is a piece of space rock orbiting a dying sun. That's right. A black hole. Now how can something orbit a black hole and never fall into it? That is the question.

9. "The Satan Pit"

BBC

Down and down the rabbit hole.

Another double episode, which got me thinking: a double episode is like a proper movies in itself. Thanks, BBC!

Anyway, this is also the first time I noticed that people actually die in Doctor Who. One in the airlock, and another one through the window (although to be fair, he did turn evil, thanks to Satan himself). By the way, Satan is merely an idea, and thus has no gender. But he speaks in a man's voice.

And finally, the TARDIS just beat the Millenium Falcon for the most awesome ship in the universe, because it can fly away from a black hole─with another ship in tow. How awesome is that?

10. "Love & Monsters"

BBC

L.I.N.D.A. Rock Band

A great episode, in my opinion. Quite a lot of drama, especially for an episode without that much screen time for the Doctor. The reason it becomes quite dramatic is because there are several characters involved, most of whom die. Yes, like I said with the previous episode, people do die in this show. Bridget, who never found her daughter. Mr. Skinner, who never got to kiss her on the lips. And Ursula, who was immortalized inside a tile. Good story, Russell T. Davies. And good directing, Dan Zeff. A bit cheesy, though.

Its kind of weird if you're watching this in 2012. Thats because it's the London Olympics. And that's like a few days from now. Also, "Draw Something". Weird, innit?

12. "Army of Ghosts"

BBC

Seriously. Ghosts.

All right, another double episode, which promises to show us how Rose Tyler died. Right. Ghosts also start coming back to walk the earth (which gets the Doctor singing the Ghostbusters theme song). Right. Spooky. That means that Torchwood's behind this. I wouldn't mind working in Torchwood, despite the ghosts and that huge creepy sphere they have. They've got that really cute black girl working there, which is good enough for me.

BBC

Dear producers, please make her
a major character. Thank you.

Wait a minute... giant sphere... oh. My. God. Daleks.

And in other news: Mickey is alive. That's right. Mickey Smith. Is back. Bitches.

13. "Doomsday"

BBC

"Look at my face. Do I look bothered?"

A.k.a. the series finale. And like the previous episode said, this is the story of how Rose Tyler died. Don't worry, though. She doesn't really die, see. In fact, Rose Tyler gets a happy ending as far as happy endings go. She gets reunited with her dad (which is parallel universe-dad), her mum, and Mickey. Only problem is, she will never see the Doctor again. Kind of heart-wrenching, especially after that "I love you". Oh, Rose. I'll miss you. Even if I didn't like you that much.

That, ladies and gentlemen, was the David Tennant. And that, ladies and gentlemen, was Rose Tyler, the companion who set the standard for all companions to follow. However, she wasn't really smart as companions go. Even if the Doctor has two hearts, he cannot give even one of them away. A Time Lord cannot love a human, at least not "love" in the "getting married and have kids" kind of way. Sorry, companions. It's really not never going to happen.